


a day in the life of (something extraordinary)

by thunderylee



Category: Japanese Actor RPF, KAT-TUN (Band)
Genre: Canon Universe, F/M, Slice of Life, side kameisa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-09-08
Updated: 2008-09-08
Packaged: 2019-02-05 03:20:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,943
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12785820
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thunderylee/pseuds/thunderylee
Summary: A day in the life of Nakamaru Yuichi.





	a day in the life of (something extraordinary)

**Author's Note:**

> reposted from agck.

The sun is already up on the dreary Monday morning, the humidity seeping through the crack in the window to make Maru feel like he was sleeping in a swamp.

His eyes pop open. Sun? That means it’s… oh great, late again.

He listens to Kame’s seven angry voicemails as he falls into the bathroom and makes himself halfway presentable, trying out Jin’s tested-and-true method of sticking his head under the sink and dousing himself in cologne. He picks up clothes at random from the floor after deeming their level of cleanliness, although he realizes once he’s halfway out the door that he doesn’t match. At all. Massu would be proud of the purple and yellow hoodie and burgundy sweats with the teal stars on them; he considers freezing his ass off on the train by stuffing the hoodie in his bag and rocking his ratty white T-shirt with the big tongue on the front.

He’s in the middle of an amazing yawn when someone pokes him on the shoulder. “Excuse me…”

Without looking, he tries to squish himself against the wall so this sweet-sounding girl can get by. “Sorry,” he mutters.

“No, um, is it… Nakamaru-kun?”

He swivels his head and looks down, right into the warm eyes of Horikita Maki. She’s carrying an armful of books and dressed much more naturally than when she appears on TV. “Maki-chan,” he says, trying to stop his nerves from shaking. “Wh-what are you doing here?”

She holds out the books. “School.”

“Right,” Maru says, scratching his head. He feels his hair sticking out and cringes, wishing not for the first time that he had gotten up earlier. “Good luck,” he adds, offering a lopsided smile.

She smiles back. “Thanks. Good luck to Nakamaru-kun too.”

The train chooses that moment to lurch, and Maru grabs onto the wristband hanging from the ceiling. Maki isn’t quite so fast, though, and her books go flying as Maru reacts without thinking and catches her around the waist.

When the ride becomes smoother, Maki starts to wiggle out of his embrace, finally poking him in the hand. “Nakamaru-kun, I need to get my books.”

“Oh!” he gasps, immediately releasing her and feeling stupid for holding on so long. He kneels and stacks her books in her arms, then stands at a distance and thinks about getting off at the next stop just to avoid the awkwardness.

Then his phone rings. It’s Kame, and he’s not happy.

“Kame, listen,” Maru tries to get in, taking advantage of every time Kame takes a breath and doesn’t yell at him for half a second.

“Kamenashi?” Maki inquires, stepping forward and gesturing for Maru’s phone.

“Who is that?” Kame demands on the other end of the line. “A _girl_? God, Nakamaru, not you too. I thought you were the decent one of the group.”

Maru doesn’t even know what to say to that, so he just holds his phone out to Maki, who accepts it happily and balances it on her shoulder. “Kamenashi-kun? It’s Maki.” She grins. “It’s been a long time, yes. Listen, I just wanted to tell you that Nakamaru-kun is late because I slipped on the train and hurt my knee. It’s not an emergency, but you know how he is.” She nods; clearly Kame is agreeing with her. “I hope you won’t hold this against him.”

She listens while Kame talks some more, then says good-bye and flips Maru’s phone shut. “He’s not mad at you anymore,” she says as she hands it back.

He gapes at her. “You’re amazing.”

“I can come by later and limp around if you want,” Maki offers, then laughs. “I’m really not a liar, I swear. But I think it’s okay to lie to Kamenashi. He’s unreasonable sometimes.”

“You don’t have to come all the way to-” Maru starts, then gets interrupted by the loudspeaker announcing Maki’s school.

“Thanks for saving me,” she says, waving as she starts to head for the door. “Kamenashi has my number if you change your mind.”

Maru watches the door close behind her and wonders what the hell just happened.

::

“Nakamaru, you _dog_ ,” Jin greets him, ruffling his hair. Maru feels some sense of justice when Jin looks at his hand and makes a face, wiping it on the nearest towel. “Jesus, don’t you wash your hair?”

“I overslept,” Maru says. “I’m lucky I made the train on time.”

“Horikita Maki,” Koki says in an impressed voice, bouncing on the arm of the couch. “She’s not even an adult yet.”

“Just so you know,” says Kame. “If you hurt her, I’ll have to kill you.”

“I’m not going out with Maki-chan!” Maru exclaims. “She’s too young for me, and…”

“And what,” prompts Koki. “We all know you think she’s pretty.”

“… and she probably doesn’t like me,” Maru adds quietly.

Kame rolls his eyes. “And they say I’m the girl of this group.”

Junno strides up, lifting his foot on the coffee table and folding his arms. “Let me help you court her, Nakamaru-kun! I’m very knowledgeable in the ways of women.”

Jin rolls his eyes and leans over the back of the couch, placing his face a little too close to Maru’s. “If you know what’s good for you, you won’t listen to a word he says.”

“You should talk,” Kame points out, throwing the nearest item at Jin’s head. It misses and hits Maru in the shoulder, but neither Kame nor Jin seem to acknowledge that. “I do not approve of anything Jin may tell you to do to Maki-chan.”

Maru blinks. “You guys -”

“Flowers!” Koki practically yells, like he’s had an epiphany. “Girls like flowers, right? And since she got hurt, you can say something on the card like ‘I hope the sweet smell can help ease your pain~'”

“That is the gayest thing I have ever heard,” Kame says, although whether he’s referring to the words or the voice Koki was using is debatable. “Maki-chan isn’t a flowers kind of girl.”

“Yeah,” agrees Jin. “She can get to a higher level in Dragonball Z than both me and Pi.”

Junno looks impressed.

“You should take her to the arcade,” Kame suggests. “Let her whoop your ass in some games, then she’ll probably like you.”

All five of their heads turn to the back of the room when Ueda bangs his fist on the makeup table. “As appealing as Nakamaru’s love life is, I have a solo concert to prepare for so could we please get on with our actual _work_?”

Maru has never before been so grateful for Ueda’s bitchiness.

::

It takes mad skills to hunt down Masuda without running into Yamapi, the kind of skills that Maru definitely does not have.

“Nakamaru-kun!” Yamapi booms, slinging an arm around Maru when he tries to slink past him in the hallway. “I heard about your run-in with Maki-chan this morning.”

Maru squeezes his eyes shut and wills time to go back. If Masi Oka can do it, certainly he can too.

“Personally, I don’t think you’re her type,” Yamapi goes on, and Maru has a strong urge to frown. “She’s quiet and serious, while you’re… not.”

Maru sees Tegoshi in one of the rooms they pass and pleads with his eyes for the youngest NewS member to save him.

“Nakamaru-kun!” Tegoshi squeals, abandoning Koyama’s hair and running out into the hallway. “It’s so nice to see Nakamaru-kun this morning!”

Words cannot express how glad Maru is to see Tegoshi, particularly when Yamapi loosens his hold and clears his throat. “Nice talking to you, Nakamaru.”

“I owe you,” Maru says to Tegoshi after Yamapi is out of hearing range.

“It’s lunchtime soon,” Tegoshi says with a smile. “Nakamaru can treat me! Then you won’t owe me anymore, yeah?”

“Actually, I was looking for Masuda-” Maru starts.

“He can come too!” Tegoshi says excitedly. “Massu likes to eat, right? Is KAT-TUN breaking for lunch right now? I can text him and have him meet us. Let’s go!”

Maru finds himself being dragged away, and oddly enough it’s the most normalcy he’s experienced all day.

::

“Pretend I’m Maki-chan.”

Both Massu and Maru choke on their food, although Massu recovers much more quickly. “ _What_?” Maru says incredulously.

“You need to practice, right?” Tegoshi explains, standing by the table and looking expectantly at Maru. “You can pretend I’m Maki-chan and we can help you have a successful date.”

“I’m not going on a date-” Maru starts.

“We?” Massu repeats. “I don’t know how much help I can be here.”

Tegoshi frowns at Massu’s fallen face, and Maru can almost see the wheels turning in his head. “I got it!” he says. “Massu can be Maki-chan, and _I’ll_ help you.”

Maru chokes again. “Tegoshi-kun, I don’t think this is really necessary.”

Massu shifts uncomfortably. “I don’t even know who this girl is. How am I supposed to act like her?”

“Yamapi says she’s very quiet,” Tegoshi tells him. “And serious. You can do that, right?”

Massu nods and continues to eat. “Quiet and serious. Got it.”

“Wait.” Tegoshi rummages around in his bag until he finds two sparkly hairbands. To his credit, Massu pays no mind when Tegoshi stands behind him and pulls as much of his hair as he can into two little pigtails on either side of his head. “There, now he kind of looks like a girl.”

Maru squints and still sees Massu with pigtails. “I don’t think this is going to work.”

“Nakamaru- _kun_ ,” Tegoshi says exasperatedly. “It’s all about finding a common topic and letting the conversation flow naturally. You also have to do gentlemanly things like pull out her chair and compliment her appearance.”

“I’m already sitting down,” Massu points out.

“Yes, well, I’m sure Nakamaru knows how do to that,” Tegoshi replies, then turns to Maru. “Now, the key of complimenting is to find something that she clearly did just for this date. If she wears her hair the same way she always does or an outfit that you’ve seen before, it will sound forced if you compliment those things. Usually girls do at least one thing that’s different when they go on a first date with a new guy, so pay attention.”

“Tegoshi-kun knows a lot about girls,” Massu muses out loud.

Tegoshi beams. “I’ve been on a lot of dates,” he replies.

“Yet you don’t have a girlfriend,” Maru adds.

“That you know about.” Tegoshi grins. “Okay, Nakamaru-kun, so you’ve just sat down with… Takako.”

Massu snorts.

Tegoshi waves his hands to signify the ‘start’, and Maru clears his throat. “Um… your hair looks really… cute.”

Massu grins. “Really? Tegoshi did it for me just now. He can be pushy sometimes, but he’s usually right in the end.”

Tegoshi silently eats his lunch and looks highly amused.

Maru can’t help but smile. Having lunch with Massu is just so natural that Maru doesn’t feel any of the nerves he felt this morning on the train. Even if Massu has pigtails. “How’s your food?” he asks.

This is clearly the right question. Massu launches into a five-minute critique on the taste, how it’s cooked, its appearance, and his overall review of the meal. Maru listens intently, intending to find a side topic to branch out on, but Massu seems content just rambling on by himself. He moves on to discuss other kinds of food and how they compare to his lunch now, then goes in detail as to what his mother used to cook for him growing up, and what he enjoys cooking now.

Maru is slightly amazed because he doesn’t already know most of this.

“This is fun, yeah?” Massu says. “Nakamaru-kun doesn’t usually seem interested in these kind of things, so I don’t talk about them.”

A pang of guilt hits Maru right in the heart. “I do care.”

“It’s okay,” Massu says quickly, but Maru notices that his smile is brighter.

::

Maru nearly chokes on his food for the second time when he sees Maki outside the window right by his and Kame’s table. Granted, he almost misses her in favor of Kuroki Meisa’s insistent banging on the window, but there she is standing in the background and looking a little embarrassed at her friend’s behavior.

Kame, apparently, is used to it. He hurries to scoot over when Meisa storms into the restaurant, plopping right next to him and considering his side dishes. Maru thinks that she probably would have sat directly _on_ Kame had he not moved.

Maru is paying so much attention to the two across from him that it takes a second for him to notice Maki patiently waiting for him to let her in the booth. He gasps and apologizes, scrambling to get up so that she can sit on the inside (“Girls like to feel protected,” Tegoshi’s words echo in his head).

Meisa looks impressed and smacks Kame on the arm. “Why didn’t you let me sit by the window?”

“Because I was here first,” Kame answers nonchalantly, leaning forward to take a giant bite of his sandwich. “And I’m not trying to court you.”

Maru chokes for a third time. “I’m not-”

Then Maki laughs. Not a giggle, not a little quiet chuckle, but a full-out laugh that has her covering her face and shaking. Maru gapes at her, seriously thinking about going home and crawling under his covers for about five years until everyone has forgotten about this humiliating event.

Maki sees him staring and looks down. “Your nose gets red when you’re embarrassed,” she tells him.

Maru’s hand flies to his nose while Kame and Meisa watch like parent hawks.

“It’s cute,” Maki adds.

Maru is pretty sure that his entire face is red now. “Um, thanks.”

There’s a kick under the table, not directed at Maru although he notices the insistent look on Meisa’s face towards Maki.

“Thanks again for this morning,” Maki says a little awkwardly.

“You’re welcome,” Maru replies, wondering if they’re still lying to Kame. He doesn’t think Kame would care either way, judging by the proud expression on his face. Meisa looks just as ecstatic, and Maru feels suffocated. “We’re just about done here,” he tells Maki, pushing away the rest of his dinner. “Do you want to go somewhere else?”

“ _Yes_ ,” she said gratefully, grabbing her purse and waiting for Maru to toss Kame some bills before following him out.

Meisa frowns at them, but Kame looks pleased as he shoves Meisa out of his side of the booth so that she can sit on the other side.

Maru doesn’t even think about how he’s grabbed onto Maki’s arm until they’re away from the restaurant, and he pulls his hand away as soon as he realizes it. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean-”

“It’s okay,” she replies, rubbing her arm. “I’m just glad to be out of there.”

Maru looks up and down the street. “Did you want to eat?”

“Meisa and I already ate,” she tells him. “We were just finishing dinner when she got a text from Kamenashi and dragged me with her.”

“That sneaky little…” Maru trails off.

Maki rolls her eyes. “They seem to be trying to hook us up.”

Maru pales and fumbles with his hands. “It appears so.”

She side-glances at him, worriedly, but doesn’t speak.

Maru wracks his brain for something to say, anything, but then Maki stops short and her face lights up at the bright neon signs in front of them. When he follows her line of sight, he sees their shining oasis – an arcade.

After exchanging a quick look, they both race inside, where Maki beats him in all ten games of table hockey, celebrating her victory by cashing in her tickets on a stuffed elephant that she holds out to Maru. “For you,” she says clearly.

“It’s because of the nose, right?” Maru says, but he’s smiling.

She smiles too. “I like you better than Kamenashi.”

That’s good enough for Maru.

::

It’s difficult to take Massu seriously in pigtails, but he’s not smiling and therefore worthy of Maru’s whole attention. “So you don’t like her, but you’re bummed that she turned you down?”

“I’m not bummed,” Maru protests, practically hugging the carton of ice cream to his chest.

“Right,” says Massu, disbelieving. “Maybe she just wants to concentrate on school. I can’t imagine that she would just not like you.”

Maru scoffs. “Sometimes it happens like that.”

“Well,” Massu says, leaning back against the couch. “I can’t see any reason for anybody not to like you. You’re very nice and you try your best at everything you do.”

Maru’s head slowly turns to face Massu. “I’m not that nice.”

“Sure you are.” Massu grins, and Maru’s life is brightened a little. “I’m not friends with not-nice people.”

“What about Tegoshi?” Maru asks with a chuckle.

Massu pauses. “He _means_ well…”

Maru flicks one of Massu’s pigtails. “Is that why you’re still wearing these?”

Massu looks honestly confused. “Why would I still be wearing them because of Tegoshi?”

Maru blinks, his hand falling from Massu’s hair as he considers the alternatives. Maybe Massu actually likes the way it looks. Or maybe they keep his hair out of his face. Or… it’s because of what Maru had said earlier on their fake date.

His attention is called back when Massu pokes him in the shoulder. “Hey, did you know that your nose gets red when you’re embarrassed?”

Maru pokes him back and closes his eyes, leaning back against the couch and stretching his arms over his head. “What a day,” he says.

Massu wrinkles his nose. “Imagine how much better it would have been if you’d actually showered.”


End file.
